After All
by Kristen3
Summary: Mary's hard work has finally led to some recognition - she's being given a Lifetime Achievement Award. She knows it will be a big deal, but it will be even more emotional than she expects.
1. Chapter 1

Mary couldn't believe it as she read the headline. She knew it was awards season, but she didn't think about that much. She'd learned a long time ago that doing the news wasn't just about awards, or even ratings. It was about getting the news on the air, and doing it well. If that led to awards or ratings, great. But those things were just a nice bonus.

Apparently, her hard work had been noticed. For, right here on her computer screen, she read, "Lifetime Achievement Award from New York Broadcasters being given to Mary Richards!" A photo, taken while she'd covered a story last year, accompanied the article. Mary was in shock as she read. _"For over twenty years, Mary has worked tirelessly, using her talent and connections in the news business to help others. She has done special reports on the homeless, abused animals, and sick children, just to name a few. But the cause that's always been closest to her heart is women. Even as busy as she is, she always offers to help newcomers at her station, making sure they are given the same opportunities as their male counterparts. When asked why this is so important to her, she merely smiles and says, "Well, when I first took a job at a TV station, I didn't exactly have many qualifications. But someone gave me a chance when I needed it. There's no way I'd be where I am now without that. I just want to give somebody else a chance."_

As she read the words, Mary remembered speaking them at a charity function which helped give opportunities to women from low-income backgrounds. Helping out at such events seemed only natural to Mary. She could still remember walking into a newsroom, feeling scared and totally out-of-place. Seven years later, she found herself fired from WJM. Unemployment was frightening enough, but what hurt even worse was the loss of the people she'd come to regard as family.

But once she realized she had no choice but to move on, Mary quickly found out that she was now more than qualified to work at a station that wasn't dead-last in the ratings. Her career quickly took off. After that, a move to New York led to an even bigger job. Of course, Mary didn't mind, as she was now in the same state and city as Rhoda.

Still in a state of shock, Mary picked up her cellphone and pressed the button to call her best friend. "Rhoda, you're never going to believe this!"

"You're engaged and getting married tomorrow," Rhoda answered with a laugh. She still couldn't quite believe the way men always seemed to respond to Mary.

"No," Mary said, rolling her eyes. "I just saw a headline that says I'm going to be given a lifetime achievement award!"

"Kid, that's wonderful! It doesn't surprise me a bit, with all the good you've done."

"Oh, come on, Rhoda, I haven't done that much."

"Are you kidding me? You're always telling me about a story you're doing on a children's hospital, or homeless animals or something."

"Yeah, but that's no big deal. I mean, it's not like that many people watch," Mary said, beginning to feel embarrassed.

"Well, somebody must be, or you wouldn't be getting this award!" Rhoda said. She knew Mary was, as usual, being much too modest.

"Well, I guess," Mary admitted. "Hey, would you like to come to the awards thing with me?" Her dedication to her career left little time for dating, but Mary didn't mind. The selection of men wasn't much better here than it had been in Minneapolis.

"Of course, kid. I wouldn't miss this," Rhoda said. "Hey, you know who you should tell? Lou!"

"Rhoda, I couldn't do that! Mr. Grant is busy now, with his grandkids and great-grandkids. He wouldn't be interested."

Rhoda knew that was ridiculous, but she also knew her best friend well enough to know it wasn't worth arguing. This night would be special for Mary, no matter what.


	2. Chapter 2

The night of the awards banquet was here. Since the award was announced, Mary's coworkers hadn't stopped congratulating her. She was thankful for the support, but embarrassed nonetheless. She was grateful most of her coworkers couldn't be here tonight. Although she did it from time to time, public speaking was not one of Mary's favorite things.

"Hey, kid, don't worry about this. You've given plenty of speeches before," Rhoda said, squeezing Mary's hand. She didn't blame her best friend for being nervous, but she wished Mary would relax and enjoy her night.

"I know, and I get nervous every time. It's even worse when I'm given an award. Remember when I won the Teddy Award for the first time? What a horrible week that was!" Even now, Mary could recall how sick she'd been with a cold, how she twisted her ankle, and had to wear an awful outfit she'd borrowed from Rhoda to the awards ceremony. When her name was called, Mary walked up to the podium, and the only words that would come out were, "I usually look so much better than this!"

"But nothing like that's going to happen tonight," Rhoda reassured her friend. "You look amazing in that dress, as always. And you practiced your speech about a million times."

"I know, you're right," Mary admitted. "But still, I keep thinking something horrible's going happen."

Rhoda squeezed Mary's hand, knowing there was nothing more she could say to ease her friend's nerves. She had a feeling, though, that this night would turn around for Mary once the speech was over.

As the speeches and other awards progressed, Mary was grateful for Rhoda's presence. Not only did her best friend ease her nerves (at least somewhat), but Mary felt more comfortable talking to her than to the others at their table. The night seemed to last forever, but still, the time for Mary's award came much more quickly than she'd have liked.

"It gives me great pleasure to present this award to Mary Richards!"

"Kid, that's you!" Rhoda said, as Mary seemed not to have realized.

"Here goes," Mary said as she got up from her seat. She could hardly believe she could make it up to the stage, as she couldn't feel her legs all of a sudden. When she reached the podium, she took a moment to make sure her speech was in her hand. But as Mary placed it on the podium, she wondered if she would even be able to make sense of it, as nervous as she was. But, to her own amazement, words came out when she opened her mouth. "Well, I never expected to be given an award like this. I appreciate the recognition, of course. But I've never really cared about ratings or trophies. The news is something that can't be taken lightly. Although it has changed a great deal since I started out in this business, certain things never change. I was lucky enough to start out in a place where I was able to learn everything I needed to know about working on a news show. The station wasn't very big, and we were literally last in the ratings, but that never mattered to us. My coworkers and I became a family. I know that sounds like a cliché, but it really is true. Not a day goes by that I don't remember all the things I learned back at WJM. The memories I've made will stick with me forever. I wish I could share this award with two of my former coworkers. I couldn't love them more if we were related by blood. Lou Grant and Murray Slaughter, thank you for all you've done for me."

By the time Mary was done with her speech, she could hardly speak for the lump in her throat. But it felt good to give credit where credit was due. Everything that had happened in her career was a result of the experiences she'd had at WJM.

Rhoda couldn't have been prouder of her best friend. Their friendship had changed a lot over the years. But she, too, would never forget those years they spent in Minneapolis living in the same apartment building. When Mary returned from the stage, Rhoda was waiting to hug her. "Your speech was perfect, just like I said it would be," Rhoda said as the embrace ended.

"Yeah, but I didn't think I'd be so emotional. People probably think I'm a lunatic."

"They do not think that," Rhoda said, rolling her eyes. "You survived your speech, so now you can relax and enjoy the rest of your night, OK?"

Mary sat back down, giving Rhoda's hand a grateful squeeze. She knew she'd never have survived giving that speech without her.


	3. Chapter 3

Suddenly, a voice made Mary turn. "Your speech was pretty good."

"Mr. Grant?!" Mary could hardly believe her eyes, but there was no mistaking that her former boss was walking toward their table. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, Rhoda called me," Lou said as he reached them. "Mary, how could you even think I wouldn't be interested in this?"

Mary stood up, still unable to believe this was real. "Well, I know how busy you are with your family out in California. I didn't want you to feel like you had to travel all the way across the country just for me." She hugged him tightly, realizing just then how much she'd missed him.

"If this award thing was on _Mars_ , I'd have found a way to get there!" Lou said. He could hardly believe that the young woman who'd entered the newsroom all those years ago was now standing before him. The fragile girl he remembered was long gone.

"So would I," said a voice behind Lou.

Mary looked, and there stood Murray. "You came too?"

Murray nodded. "I wouldn't have missed this for the world." Before he even knew what was happening, Mary was hugging him. It was a feeling he missed far more than he cared to admit.

"I don't like making speeches," Mary said to them. "I didn't really want anyone to make a big deal out of this."

"But this _is_ a big deal," Lou said. "You've worked hard, and it's about time you got some recognition for it. Think of this as making up for all those Teddy Awards you didn't win."

"That's true," Murray said, smiling sadly. "At least now you get to work with news anchors who can actually read." Ted had passed away some years ago. Although they all felt the loss, Murray still could not pass up the chance to joke about his former coworker. Somehow, he felt Ted would've wanted it that way.

"Yeah, but none of this would've ever happened if it weren't for you," Mary said to Lou. "You gave me a chance when no one else would have. That's what I've been trying to do all these years, help somebody the way you helped me."

"Well, I think you have," Lou said. "I'm not that great with computers, but my grandson showed me how to Google. I've been reading about what you've done. I think it's terrific, and I couldn't be prouder."

His words instantly warmed Mary's heart. She opened her mouth to say something, but no words would come out. Instead she hugged him once more, kissing his cheek.

Rhoda watched the three of them together, knowing Mary would want to have a chance to hug the two men without her interfering. But now she stood up. "Hey, guys. Glad you could make it."

"Rhoda. Nice to see you," Lou said. He smiled at her.

"That's all I get? 'Nice to see you'? No hug?" Rhoda asked. Before Lou could protest, she hugged him. Mary's coworkers had been almost like her extended family, too, during those years in Minneapolis.

When the banquet was finally over, Mary and the others left. By unspoken agreement, they all made their way back to Mary's. All four of them felt as if time had stopped somehow. "I still can't believe you two are here," Mary said to Lou and Murray. "I'm sorry I haven't really kept in touch like I should have."

Both Lou and Murray rolled their eyes. "Don't worry about it. You've been busy changing the world," Lou said. "When I hired you, I thought I was helping a young woman who was new in the city and needed a break. Watching you grow over those seven years was amazing. It's something I could never forget. But this?" He gestured to the trophy Mary still held in her hand. "I never dreamed that this would ever happen. I can't really take credit for it. That was your hard work."

Once again, Mary felt her eyes welling up with tears. She went to hug her former boss, knowing his kind words were certainly undeserved.

"It's true, Mary," Murray said, seeing the skepticism on her face. "You're the most caring person I've ever met. It doesn't really surprise me that you've spent your life doing something like this. I always knew that once you left WJM and went on to better things, you'd do something amazing. I'm not disappointed."

Mary hugged him immediately. "I don't know what to say to either one of you. But thank you. That doesn't seem like a big enough thing to say, but it's the best I can do. And, Rhoda, I can't thank you enough, either. This has been a night I'll never forget, and it wouldn't have happened without you."

"Oh, kid, you deserve this." Rhoda hugged Mary tightly. As she let her go, Rhoda noticed that Mary still held the trophy. "What are you going to do with that thing? Put it on your mantle?"

Mary laughed. The idea was tempting. "No," she said. "I'm going to take it to work and put it right where everyone can see it. That way they'll know what can be accomplished with a lot of hard work, if they can find someone who believes in them enough." Looking at the three of them, Mary knew without a doubt, she couldn't have asked for better friends, or rather family, in her life.

 **The End**


End file.
